A Little Revenge
by Vinividivinci
Summary: Sam decides Daniel needs to learn not to interfere. A short, silly sequel to Be My Valentine. S/J always.
1. Chapter 1

She was sitting at the table with a piece of alien technology in front of her, knowing that if anyone came in it would look like she was working. But the fact was she wasn't. Samantha Carter, workaholic, was daydreaming. She reached up and grasped her necklace between her finger and thumb and rubbed it absently, thinking about the man who had given it to her.

She thought back to the last few days and couldn't help but smile. She'd taken a chance – a big one – in flying to Washington for Valentine's Day and it had turned out better than she'd ever hoped.

She'd been nervous. No – more than nervous. She'd been terrified. She and Jack had been speaking regularly on the phone and even though the conversations were sometimes awkward, it had still felt as if they were moving forward, finally, into a new relationship. The problem was, of course, that being so far away from each other made it difficult to _really_ move forward. It was for that reason she'd decided to jump in with both feet and go see him. She'd known that he would never take the first step.

She remembered those moments standing outside his house, debating whether to turn around and flee or to ring the bell. The longer she stood there, the surer she'd become that she'd made a huge mistake. Just as she went to turn around and call for a cab, a tiny voice in her head told her to be brave and take a chance.

There had been a brief instant, after Jack had let her in, when she'd thought that she had made a huge mistake. Then, when she told him the she _wasn't_ seeing anyone, she'd seen the happiness return to his face and the evening had only gotten better from there.

Their time together had had to come to an end and she'd returned to Colorado and to work. It was hard to be separated, but at least now they knew where they stood with one another. They were now officially a couple.

"Hey Sam, whatya doing?"

She looked up, startled. She hadn't heard him come in. "Uh – oh hi Daniel. I'm just –" she looked down at the object in front of her and realized she had absolutely no idea what it was or what she was supposed to be doing with it. "I'm just cataloguing this."

"Oh? What is it?"

"I – " Damn – what the hell _was_ it? "Uh, it's a – a flux capacitor." She prayed he hadn't been into movies as a kid.

"A flux – what?" He frowned in confusion.

"A flux capacitor", she said, sounding sure. "Sg8 brought it back and Dr. Fields asked me to take a look and catalogue it. He had to leave early."

"Really? He told me he'd finished looking at everything Sg8 brought back."

"No – he didn't get to this one. What is it you want Daniel?" Truth be told, she was still a bit angry at him for telling Jack she had a boyfriend. She was mad at Cassie too. Although they were both well-meaning, they shouldn't have tried to interfere. In the end they'd just caused a lot of needless pain.

Daniel was still staring at the object on her table, looking at it as if it held the answer to a universal truth. "What does it do?" he finally asked.

"Do? I – " She had no idea. "It's an energy source." There, that sounded plausible and she was pretty sure that's what the flux capacitor had been for anyway. She just hoped he wouldn't ask any more questions. She quickly turned away from the table and looked directly at her friend.

He stared for another moment at the object and then seemed to shake himself. He looked up at her and gave a small smile. "Right. Uh – I just came by to say hi. I haven't seen you in a few days and I was wondering how you were doing."

She lifted an eyebrow slightly. "Fine – I'm fine. How are you doing?"

"Me? I'm okay." He paused and looked around her office, biting his lip. "So –uhh – do anything interesting the last few days?"

She knew he was fishing but there was no way she was going to tell him all that had happened. She decided she deserved a bit of revenge for the upset he'd caused."

"Not really."

"No? Did you -"

"Did I what?"

"I just wondered if you did anything for Valentine's Day", he asked casually.

Too casually she thought. She wanted to giggle but bit her lip instead. Her only regret was that Jack wasn't here to witness this.

"For Valentine's Day? Why do you ask?"

"I don't know – just making polite conversation I guess."

"Oh. Well yes, I did do something."

After a few seconds of silence Daniel cleared his throat. "I see. What? I mean, did you have a date or something?" He sounded hopeful, but she was pretty sure he wasn't hoping that she _had_ had a date.

"Yes I did."

"_Really_?"

"Yes. Why, is that a problem?"

"No, no of course not. I'm just surprised." Daniel's arms snaked around his chest, a sure sign that he was nervous.

"Why are you surprised? Don't you think anyone would be interested in going out with me?" she asked in a sugary sweet voice. This was just so mean, she thought. But Daniel sort of deserved it. He really had to learn not to stick his nose in things.

"What? No, no - lots of guys would be interested in going out with you. I'm sure just about any man here would jump at the chance."

"They would?" She looked at him in surprise.

"Yeah – of course. So _was_ it someone from here?"

"From the SGC? No. That wouldn't be a very good idea. It could start a lot of gossip and rumors and there's nothing I'd hate more than that." So _there_ Daniel.

"I – yeah, I'm sure that would be – so _not_ from here?"

"No." She frowned at her friend. "Why are you so interested? It's not like I haven't dated before."

"True, true. So it's just casual? It's not serious?" he asked hopefully.

"Oh, I wouldn't say _that_", smiled a knowing smile. "In fact, I'd say it's _very_ serious."

"_Really_?" his voice squeaked and he looked quite upset. "But you haven't known him that long. It could just be – lust or something."

"_Daniel_!" she exclaimed, sounding shocked. "What do you think I am? It's not _lust_ – although I admit I find him _very_ attractive. And anyway, if it _was_, it wouldn't be any of your business. But I'll tell you anyway. It's much more than that. He's – just about perfect for me. He's tall and handsome, brave and honorable and very, very smart." She turned in her chair and smiled, biting her cheek hard so she wouldn't burst out laughing at her friend's sick looking expression. "I don't think I could have found anyone better."

"So – sounds serious."

"I told you, it's very serious."

"But I thought this was a first date?"

"Who told you that? Although you're right, it was a first date but I've known him for a while and anyway, I could tell after just a few minutes that he was the one."

Daniel looked at her as if he desperately wanted to say something, but didn't know quite what. His eyes suddenly narrowed. "What's that?" he asked, just noticing her hand playing with something hanging around her neck.

"This?" she dropped her hand away and showed him the heart. "He gave it to me. It's pretty, isn't it?"

"Sam – he gave you that on a _first date_? Don't you think this guy is rushing it a bit? I mean, that's the kind of thing you give someone you love, not on a first date."

"I told you, I've known him for a while and it was a beautiful gift."

Daniel sighed and shook his head slightly. "It's really none of my business, but -"

"You're right", Sam interrupted gently. "As much as I value our friendship, I can't let you interfere in this. I _know_ I've made the right decision with this man. Can't you just be happy for me?"

"Of course I can. I'm sorry.", Daniel answered, sounding sad but guilty. "You know I want only the best for you. It's just -"

"Just what?"

"What about Jack?" he asked hesitatingly.

"_Jack_? What about him?"

"Well – I mean – we all thought -"

"Thought what Daniel?"

"We all thought that you and he – you know – that there was something between you. I guess we're just disappointed that you're seeing someone else."

"_We're_ disappointed? What do you mean? Who else knows I'm dating?"

"Cassie and Teal'c both know", he told her.

"Cassie and _Teal'c_? Okay, I know about Cassie – I told her – but I certainly didn't say anything to Teal'c – and how do _you_ know that she knows?"

"Well, she may have called me."

"She _may_ have – Daniel, what the heck are you doing? This is my private life. You shouldn't be discussing it with anyone, lease of all Cassie."

"Hey, she called me. She was upset and needed to talk to someone."

"Upset? Why was she upset?"

"I told you – we all thought you and Jack would get together. She was disappointed."

Sam sighed and slowly shook her head. "You guys really need to get your own lives. Jack – the General and I are friends, very good friends and we're going to stay that way. You really shouldn't worry about us like this."

"But Sam – he's in love with you!"

"Who?"

"The Gen – Jack. He's loved you for years."

She closed her eyes briefly, feeling a twinge of guilt. Maybe she should just tell him and everyone would be happier. But then she remembered the stricken look on Jack's face – and the liquor bottles thrown in his kitchen garbage – and knew Daniel and Cassie had to learn a lesson. "Daniel, he was my _commanding officer_. We couldn't have done anything even if we'd wanted to."

"I know – not then, but _now_ you can. There's nothing standing in your way – except for whoever this guy is", he finished in a mumble. "So, who is he anyway? What does he do?"

"Well, he has an office job", she told him, thinking furiously.

"An office job? He's a paper pusher?" he asked, trying hard to keep the disgust out of his voice.

"Yes –there's nothing wrong with that. He's an important man and makes important decisions."

"I'm sure he does, and I didn't say there was anything wrong with working in an office. I just pictured you with -"

"With?"

"Someone more active I guess."

"More active? I spend half of my life traipsing through jungles and forests, across deserts and over mountains fighting aliens intent on destroying our planet. Maybe I'm looking for someone with a little _less_ active a life."

"So what's his name?"

She'd known this was coming and really didn't want to lie. She could say 'Jonathan' but that would probably give it away. It would be too much of a coincidence for the man to have the same name as Jack. "Uh –"

At that precise moment her phone rang. She was not one to believe in miracles, relying much more on science as her system of belief. However, in this case, she was sure there was some kind of divine intervention. "Hello", she picked up the receiver quickly.

"_Hey Carter_", Jack voice was clear to her, but she didn't think Daniel could hear him. At least she hoped not.

"Hello", she answered formally. Please let Jack figure it out.

"Howya doin?" he asked, a soft note in his voice.

"I'm well, thank you. Yes, I'll have it finished and back to you in a little while if that's okay."

"Is someone there with you?" he asked.

Thank God he was smarter than he sometimes let on! "Yes, that's right", she replied.

"Is it Daniel?"

"Exactly."

"And you don't want to tell him about us?"

"That's correct."

There was a pause and she prayed he wasn't offended. They hadn't really spoken about their friends, and she didn't want him to think she was hiding things – or at least she _was_ but only for a little while. She needed some time for just the two of them, without questions and comments and teasing. And there was that revenge factor too!

"You're evil Carter, you know that?" His voice was filled with laughter. "Is he wetting his pants?"

"Yes, definitely."

He laughed out loud. "Enjoy, although you know you're in for it when he finds out?"

"Yes, that's to be expected with things like this, but definitely worth it."

"Okay. Call me later?"

"Absolutely and – thank you."

"You're welcome – and thank _you_. I'll talk to you soon Carter."

She slowly placed the phone down, her hand again moving to her necklace. She wanted to be back in DC.

"Everything okay?" Daniel asked.

"Huh? Oh yeah, everything's fine. I just need to get some work done. Sorry Daniel – maybe we can talk later?"

"Sure. Maybe we can get together for a team night this week?"

"That would be fun."

Daniel left her office, but before she had time to even blink he'd stuck his head back in.

"By the way, I _did_ see Back to the Future. Next time I'd try to think of a better name for it. _Flux Capacitor", _he muttered as he left again.

She grimaced slightly after being caught out but then shrugged. Hey, she deserved to daydream a bit. It's not as if she did it very often - or ever for that matter.

She continued to sit for a few more moments, torn between guilt at basically lying to Daniel and wanting to laugh. Poor man – he was going to be miserable until she told him the truth. She bent her head and picked up the alien artifact and glared at it.

"Okay – what the _hell_ are you?"

* * *

They went out on one short, boring mission that week and the rest of the time was spent catching up on some research and lots of paper work. Daniel and Teal'c were both relatively quiet, for which she was thankful, and neither mentioned anything about her 'date'. She knew they were dying to know – even Teal'c, who was usually quiet about things like that looked as if he had to bite his tongue on a number of occasions.

She found herself thinking about Jack almost all the time and had to talk to herself seriously while on their mission so that she could keep focused on work and not on the man she left back home. As the week went on she kept wishing that she could see him. Long distance relationships were horrible.

She finally decided, by the end of the week, that it was time to put her two teammates out of their misery and to tell them. She'd spoken to Jack every evening and he'd agreed. He'd had calls from both Teal'c and Daniel.

"They were checking up on me Carter", he laughed. "They're worried that I'm pining."

"And you're not?" she smiled.

"Of course – I'm pining for your company. So, you're really going to tell them?"

"Yeah. I'm having them over on Saturday. I wish you could be there."

* * *

She'd just finished dinner and got her pajamas and robe and grabbed a novel she'd wanted to read for a while. It was Friday evening and she looked forward to doing nothing. It was just as she settled in that her doorbell rang.

Frowning, wondering who it could be, she got up to answer the door. "_Jack!_"

"Hey Carter", he grinned. "So – can I come in?"

She reached her hand out and grabbed his arm and pulled him inside. She kicked the door shut and pulled him close and kissed him, hard - like she hadn't seen him for – days, weeks, years.

After a few loooong minutes, they both surfaced for air.

"Uh" Jack licked his lips, looking quite stunned. "That was – Carter?"

"Yes?"

"Can I come in again so we can do this over?"

"Why? You didn't like it?"

"Hell – I _loved _it. That's why I want to do it over."

She laughed and pulled his head down slightly until their lips met. "You don't have to come in again for that!"

It was quite a while later before they moved into the living room and sat down. "What are you doing here?" she finally asked. "You didn't tell me you were coming."

"I know – and I hope that's okay?" he frowned, looking slightly worried.

She giggled. "I did the same to you and of _course_ it's okay. It's wonderful. I'm just surprised."

"Yeah, well I got finished early today and was on my way home when I decided to see if I could grab a flight. You know – being a General does have some perks."

"They had a seat for you?"

"Oh yeah. Anyway – I thought you might want some help telling Teal'c and Daniel. They're going to be a _little_ ticked off – so I figured you could use some back up."

"Definitely", she nodded. "Thank you."

* * *

Jack was in the kitchen helping to make the salad. She'd been a bit surprised to find out how handy he could be around the kitchen. Usually when they'd gone for team nights to his place he'd ordered in, but it appeared he knew his way pretty well around a kitchen.

"I don't just eat junk food", he told her. "I have to watch my weight now that I'm not in the field anymore."

"You're looking pretty good Sir", she told him. She walked by and patted him on his six. "You feel pretty good too!"

"Huh – it only gets better Carter!"

She laughed but could feel herself turn a bit pink. She just hoped Jack didn't notice. As of yet they hadn't gone beyond some heavy kissing, both deciding it was better to wait and really get to know each other first before hopping into bed together. She'd agreed but now –

"Don't think so much", he walked up silently behind her and kissed her neck. "They'll be here soon. I'm gonna go change – I spilled some oil on my shirt."

It was only a couple of minutes later when the bell rang. With Jack still in the guest room she answered the door.

"Come on in guys", she welcomed her two best friends – except for Jack.

She got them settled, chatting to them both as they sat down in her living room. "What can I get you to drink?"

Just then a door shut down the hall. She turned back to face her teammates, who were both looking at her in surprise.

"Uh, Cassie here?" Daniel asked.

"Cassie? No, she's still at college."

"Do you have a guest Colonel Carter?" Teal'c asked. "Is this a poor time for us to be visiting."

"What? No – I mean yes I have a guest – but it's not a bad time. In fact, he wants to see you."

Just then they all heard whistling. Daniel frowned and then got a startled look on his face. "Jack?"

"Hey Daniel, Teal'c. Good to see you guys!"

"It is good to see you as well O'Neill." Teal'c spoke calmly, although the others could all tell he was disturbed. "I did not know you were joining us."

"No – it was a surprise", Sam told them. "It's nice though – all of us together again."

"Uh Sam?"

"Yes Daniel?"

"What about -"

"What about – what?" she raised her eyebrows.

"I think he means your boyfriend Carter."

Daniel and Teal'c both swung to look at him – looking like fish with their eyes bulging. "You – you're okay with it?" Daniel choked out.

"Okay with – oh, you mean with _him_?" Jack said, reaching over to grab a cracker from the plate on the coffee table. "Sure, why not? Carter deserves a man to love her – don't you Carter?"

"Jack!" Sam said, her eyes narrowed.

"What Carter? Don't you think you deserve a good man?"

"Yes, I mean – Jack!", she sighed this time.

"Well I definitely think you do." He walked over and put his arms around Sam and kissed her deeply. He finally put his head up and stepped back, taking her hand in his. "Come on guys, let's eat."

As they walked towards the table, her hand still held in his, Jack could hear Daniel choking – which was followed by –

"Jack – what the _hell's_ going on?"

He grinned and kept walking.


	2. Dinner and Dessert

_**Some readers asked me to continue - so one more chapter for you fluff bunnies. **_

"Jack, Sam – what's going on?" Daniel followed them to the table.

"I think it's pretty obvious Daniel", Jack smirked, reaching for a plate and helping himself to some lasagna.

"But – but what about Sam's boyfriend?"

"Sam's - ?" Jack turned slowly and stared at his friend.

"Yeah. I _told_ you – and she admitted it. She's seeing someone."

Jack rolled his eyes and looked like he was going to say something when Sam reached over and put her hand on his arm to stop him.

"Daniel", she said gently, knowing this whole thing had upset him. "_Jack_ is my boyfriend."

"But – what about the other guy?"

"There _was no other guy_!" Jack practically shouted.

"Yes there was. Look, he even gave her that necklace."

By this time even Teal'c was looking exasperated, obviously having understood the situation quickly. Jack simply looked frustrated.

"_I_ gave her that necklace", he finally muttered, his voice weary.

"You? But – what about the office guy?"

"What office guy?" The General looked back and forth between Daniel and Sam. Now he was confused.

"Sam said she was dating some guy who worked in an office. The guy who gave her that necklace."

"Damn it Daniel! _I_ gave her the necklace and I don't know anything about an office guy."

Sam sighed and shook her head. "I was talking about Jack. Now that he's at the Pentagon he works in an office. "

"Oh." Daniel frowned as if still trying to figure things out. "So – there was no other guy?"

"No Daniel. There was no other guy", Jack said carefully.

"And you gave her that necklace?"

"Yes Daniel, I gave her that necklace", he answered slowly, deliberately.

"Oh." Daniel bit his lip. "But that's – romantic."

Jack simply raised his eyebrow in reply.

"But you're not romantic Jack", his friend continued.

"I'm not – how the hell would you know?" Jack looked at him in irritation.

"Well, I've known you for almost nine years and I've never seen you be romantic. I mean, there was Kynthia but that doesn't count because you were drugged – and I didn't see you uh – and there was Laira – but we weren't there either. And you _certainly_ weren't very romantic around Kerry – oops, does Sam know about -"

"Well if she didn't before she certainly does now!" Jack murmured sarcastically.

"I know Daniel", Sam grinned slightly, enjoying both Daniel's commentary and Jack's frustration. It was like old times.

"So – it's just not like you Jack."

O'Neill stared at his friend and then took a few steps closer to him and put his arm around him. "You didn't tell me Jackson", he crooned. "If only I'd _known_ you wanted more romance! Think of all those missions wasted, fighting the bad guys, when we could have been staring at the moon –"

Daniel pulled away sharply. "Yech! I didn't mean I wanted you to be romantic with _me_! Yech", he repeated.

"Then with whom? I don't think Teal'c really wanted a dozen roses after a mission and Sam – well, I could have gotten court martialed for being romantic with my 2IC – so that kind of reduces the opportunities."

"Okay, okay – still, I think -" he suddenly stopped as if just realizing something. "You lied to me!" he turned towards Sam accusingly. "You let me believe you were seeing someone else."

"I believe they were simply pulling the sheep over your eyes Daniel." Teal'c finally spoke up, to the gratitude of the other two in the room.

Daniel blinked. "Uh – that's wool Teal'c. And I know that's what they were doing. I just want to know why."

"Come on folks – serve yourselves something to eat and let's sit down. Sam and I will explain everything."

Once they were all seated everyone looked expectantly at Jack – who immediately turned to Sam.

She sighed and nodded. It had been her idea to tease Daniel, so it was only fair that she explain. She took a deep breath and started to speak, a serious tone to her voice. "I'm sorry for not telling you both", she looked at her two teammates. "It's not that Jack and I were trying to hide anything, it was just that before this week we weren't seeing each other."

"But we wanted to", Jack smirked.

"Jack! We were – exploring the possibilities. We were talking almost every day on the phone and just getting to know each other better as Jack and Sam rather than as officers. Does that make sense?"

"It does indeed Colonel Carter", Teal'c answered. "Do not fear that I am offended. I believed it was something like that."

"Hey – don't tell me you knew because I won't believe it. You were as deceived as I was."

"I was, until I saw O'Neill and then I understood."

"Okay fine. I get why you didn't want to let everyone know, but after your date you could have told me instead of lying Sam."

"I know Daniel but – I kind of wanted to teach you a lesson."

Daniel's brows grew closer together and his mouth opened. "A lesson? What kind of a lesson?"

"To not interfere", Jack said softly.

"Interfere? I didn't interfere. I didn't even _know_ about the two of you."

"What about the call to Jack about me 'dating someone'?"

"Uh – okay, but that wasn't _interfering_. I just didn't want Jack to get hurt."

"Well he was hurt Daniel – and needlessly. Look, all you had to do was _ask_ me before speaking with him. Instead you rushed in and told him something that wasn't true and upset him terribly."

"He didn't _seem_ upset", he tried to justify himself.

"_Seem_ being the operative word Daniel. Come on, you know Jack by now. He's a master at pretending things are okay when they're not. Believe me, he was upset."

Jack looked vaguely uncomfortable and stared at the ground.

"Jack?" Daniel asked carefully. "Is this true?"

"I was fine." He glanced at Sam then and grimaced at her fierce look. "Okay. So maybe I was a _bit_ upset." When Sam kept glaring he frowned. "All right, all right – I was _really_ upset. You happy now?" he glared back at Sam.

She smiled slightly and nodded. "See Daniel. You hurt him when you didn't need to. _And_ you almost screwed things up for us. So next time -"

"_ – next_ time", Jack interrupted, "Keep your nose out of our business!" Jack's comment immediately caused Daniel to look guilty and ashamed, which in turn made Jack feel like he'd just kicked a puppy. He sighed and leaned over to his friend and put his hand on his shoulder. "Daniel – I know you meant well and both of us really do appreciate the fact that you care about us. Next time – just talk to us first, okay? By the way - I wasn't really angry at you for this."

"It's true Daniel. Jack was okay with it. It was me that was a bit – upset. He wanted to tell you about us but I wouldn't let him."

Daniel glanced between the two of them, a look of resignation on his face. "I'm sorry Sam, Jack. I didn't mean to screw things up or to hurt you and I promise I won't jump to conclusions next time – although I _would_ like to point out that it was Cassie who started this whole thing! Still, I should have kept my mouth shut -"

"Never that Daniel", Jack smirked. "It wouldn't be you if you did that. Just – be careful."

"With the two of you a unit now?" grinned Daniel. "Damn right I'll be careful." He turned to Teal'c. "Do you have any idea what it's going to be like with the two of them together?"

"I do indeed. It is – very disturbing", Teal'c intoned.

Jack just grinned and moved closer to Sam and put his arm around her shoulders. "Yup – and you'd better get used to it."

After that the four friends spent the evening laughing and talking – and thinking up ways of getting Cassie for her part in the whole fiasco. In the end they decided to leave it up to Sam – who had another definite gleam in her eye. Jack suddenly felt sorry for the young college woman. She was going to find out that Sam wasn't always the sweet, kind aunt she'd shown herself to be around Cassie.

After Daniel and Teal'c left for the evening Jack stood up to help clear up. He and Sam worked silently, side by side for a few minutes.

"That was nice", he finally spoke, glancing briefly at her. He frowned slightly – something was up but he couldn't tell what it was. "You okay?"

"Huh?" she looked at him in surprise. "Oh yeah – fine. Just a bit tired I guess."

"Why don't I finish up in here and you can go to bed. I'm not that tired so I don't mind."

"No – that's okay", she gave him a brief smile. "I'm fine."

They continued to work and Jack grew more concerned. There _was_ something on her mind but for the life of him he couldn't figure out what it could be. The evening had gone well and she'd seemed happy. She'd laughed and teased Daniel – and him – and even Teal'c a few times. He wondered briefly if she was worried about Cassie, but was pretty sure that wasn't it. He debated pressing her on it but decided not to. Their relationship was still too new and he didn't want to start encroaching on her privacy. Even though he knew her so well, in so many ways, there were still things they needed to learn about each other. He also knew that she would let him into her life, but at her speed, not his.

He sighed and put the last plate away, feeling as if the evening was ending on a down note, after having been so positive. "I guess I'll head to bed", he finally said.

Sam jerked as if startled, and seemed to realize that the dishes were all done and she was standing staring at the soapy water in the sink. "Oh – I – fine. Have a good night."

"You too Sam." He walked up to her and gave her a brief kiss on the cheek. For some reason he was sure that's all she wanted right now. He walked to his bedroom feeling tense and worried. He wondered if she was suddenly having doubts.

Sam stared after him, watching him head down the hall to the spare bedroom. She touched her cheek, feeling suddenly like she wanted to cry. What had happened? One moment she'd been happy and the next Jack had kissed her as if she were his sister and had gone to bed.

She stayed in the kitchen, trying to figure out what was going on. It was as she thought back over the last half hour that she realized. "Damn!" she muttered. "It was her. She'd been thinking about something and had probably given him the idea she was mad or upset. In fact the truth had been just the opposite. She'd been thinking about their sleeping arrangement and had realized that she was totally tired and fed up with taking it slowly. She loved him – he loved her – and she _wanted_ him. Every night she lay in bed dreaming about him coming into her and making love with her. She'd hugged more pillows and read more books trying to get her mind off him than she could count.

So what had she done – she'd practically ignored him and, knowing Jack, had probably freaked him out. She could just imagine him sitting on his bed, worrying that she'd changed her mind or that she was upset. Silly man! She'd just have to prove to him that she was not that kind of a person. There was no way she'd ever change her mind – except about taking it slowly.

She threw the dish rag into the sink and made her way – with determination – down the hall and to her bedroom. She was going to show that man!

He finally decided to get ready for bed. There was no point sitting and worrying about it – about her. Maybe she _was_ tired. It had been a long day and she hadn't expected him. He quickly threw off his clothes, leaving on only his shorts. He was too warm to put on sweats, although he had them nearby in case he needed to use the bathroom. He wondered briefly if he should go and take a cold shower but realized it would only give him temporary respite. The moment he was back in bed he'd start thinking – dreaming – of her and then he'd want to get up and go to her and – who the hell was it who had said they should go slowly? He punched his pillow and tried to lie down. He _wanted _her. God, did he want her.

He forced himself to think of anything else to stop from thinking of her. He even tried to count the tiny polka dots on the curtains – but that only reminded him that they were Sam's curtains, and she was next door, alone in her bed and he was here, alone in _his_ and he wanted to be in with her, not here and – hell, maybe he should start listing the names of all the constellations! Of course _that_ reminded him of travelling in space, which reminded him of Sam, who was next door, alone in bed – probably in some gorgeous, sexy nightgown – or sexy pajamas or sweats or hell _combat_ gear and HE WANTED HER!

He slammed the pillow again. Snakes – that's what he'd think about. Slimy, evil, power hungry snakes intent on taking over the world. Except Sam had stopped them. She was a genius and she was _all alone, next door, in bed_! He WANTED her.

He flipped over onto his stomach – but that didn't work. Nor did doing sit ups, push-ups or thinking about his old commander in basic training who he'd _detested._ Of course _that_ made him think about the fact that he'd been Sam's commander but that he wasn't anymore and that she was alone, next door, probably totally naked, lying in bed, waiting -"

His thoughts were interrupted by a soft tap on the door. He sat up as if a bomb had gone off, startled and completely confused. He shook his head slightly and grabbed the covers and pulled them over himself. The last thing he needed was to have her see that – "Come in", he called.

The door opened slowly until he could see Sam, framed in the doorway. Her face was illuminated by the moonlight and she looked beautiful. He sucked in a breath – startled once more, but this time by how lucky he was.

"What is it?" he asked gently, wishing he could go to her but knowing he was in no shape to be walking around. "Are you okay?"

She nodded slightly and took a step forward. She stopped and bit her lip.

"What is it Sam?" he frowned, suddenly feeling worried. He quickly flipped back the covers and got out of bed. His concern – and the cool night air – quickly helping to remove the evidence of his former thoughts. He moved to her side and reached with his hands to take her arms. He noted briefly that she was dressed in a robe and appeared nervous. "Are you all right?"

She nodded and attempted to smile. "I'm fine", she finally spoke, so softly he could barely hear. "I just -"

"What? What is it?" He drew her closer and she put her arms around him and rested her head on his shoulder. He could feel himself relax. Whatever it was, it couldn't be about him – about them.

"I missed you", she whispered. "Jack?" she pulled her head back until she was looking at him. "I – don't want to be alone", she told him. She bit her lip again, a sign of nervousness, but didn't look away.

He could feel himself flush – the desire running through him. He wanted to pull her closer – feel her body against his – but he still wasn't quite sure what she meant. Did she just need his companionship or did she want more? "You want to stay with me?" he finally asked gently.

She nodded and leaned into him again. "If you'll have me?"

"If – Sam, there's nothing I want more than to have you with me always", he murmured into her hair.

"You might find that a bit awkward", she giggled.

"Are you laughing at me Colonel?" he asked, with a pretended fierceness.

"Uh huh", she nodded. "So – are you going to stand there all day Airman – or are you going to take me to bed?"

He lifted his eyebrows at that and this time it was he who leaned back. "Uh – let me get this straight Sam", he cleared his throat. "Do you want to – uh – just _stay_ here or -"

"I want you to make love with me", she said plainly.

He sighed in relief – and then smiled – and then swung her up in his arms and walked to the bed where he sat her down gently. "Thank God! I really didn't know how I was going to survive having you here and _not_ make love."

She smiled, the relief and joy shining in her eyes. "Well then, what are you waiting for?"

He returned her smile and then slowly reached down and untied the belt on her robe. As it fell away he sucked in another breath. Oh God – she wasn't wearing anything under the robe.

He slowly grinned. "Oh yeah", he murmured as gently pushed her back and got on the bed beside her. He wasn't going to have to count _anything_ tonight. He was going to be much too busy.


End file.
